Taken Away
by sphinx005
Summary: COMPLETED JA story Julie still feels like she's an outsider with the Ducks and she's harboring a secret. That is until Adam finds out and tries to help. DISCLAIMER I don't own any of the Ducks. I wrote this fic for another reason but changed it so that
1. Chapter 1

She sat at the pond's edge, a broken woman. She had just lost her best friend and the only man that she had ever truly loved.

She stared at the young skaters trying to rope each other into playing a game and felt the knife twist deeper into her heart as she thought about how he too had been one of them, young, cocky and determined to win.

He had once told her that when he was out on the ice he didn't have a care in the world, it was the only place that he was truly free.

She glanced down at the skates and jersey that lay next to her and wondered what life would be like had he survived the accident.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………….

They first met at practice, their first real practice as Team USA. She had been selected as the leading goaltender and he was a part of the original Mighty Ducks team.

They had struck up the kind of friendship that teammates do. She never really felt a part of the Ducks but they were all still friendly to her nevertheless. It all sort of changed when they won the Jr Goodwill Games. They became even more accepting towards her, especially since she was the one who stopped Gunnar Stahl's goal in the shootout to avoid going in to overtime.

What no one knew was that her father had died shortly after the games and drinking was the only way to numb the pain she felt.

He had left a big empty space inside her and there was no fixing it. The alcohol was the only thing that made her feel alive inside an otherwise dead and empty existence.

Her family were too caught up in their own grief to bother with her, they didn't care enough about her to force her to stop and then one day he came along and found out her secret…………………..

_He wasn't too keen on helping her in the first place, he didn't know enough about the situation to deal with it but he saw something inside her that drew him to her. _

_Underneath all the newfound sarcasm and the anger lay a person who was waiting for someone to get to know the real her, someone to unlock all her secrets and fantasies and see her for what she truly is, the most remarkable human being on the planet._

_She felt incredibly annoyed with him when he first brought it up and he seemed to thrive on it. _

_She knew he could be a pain in the ass but it was like whenever she was making excuses for her illness to the others he saw straight through her, saw her tough exterior as a freshly cleaned window. _

_He had seen in her what no one had ever seen before, her soul._

_The first time they kissed had been a huge mistake. He had been insisting that she should tell everyone, including their new coach at their new school about what she was going through. _

_Rather than admit he was right her stubborn ways ended up with her telling him he had no idea what he was on about and that she'd reveal all of the secrets he'd told her. _

_That was when she found out one of his weak spots. He revealed to her that he was constantly worried about her and if something happened then he couldn't live with himself, he'd had the same trouble with his older sister, only she'd lost the fight with alcohol and ended up killing not only herself but a family of four when she got behind the wheel of her car blind drunk one night. _

_He was getting close to breaking down in tears. _

_She felt the guilt and pain she'd caused him by bringing back the memories to him and realised why he'd cared so much. _

"_Okay, I'll tell them. You've annoyed the hell out of me, just enough to do it!" she joked. _

_He looked up and saw a glimpse of the old Julie, the one before the alcohol and that made him smile "I'm planning a career out of annoying people but I try to annoy you even more cos its fun!"_

_She didn't know what to say or do so she just leaned in towards him. It felt right at the time but thinking about it now she could see that it was wrong. _

_He didn't back away either and they shared their first kiss. It had been awkward and a little embarrassing like they were two 12 year olds having their first ever real kiss. _

_What made it even worse was that Connie and Guy had come back from wherever they had been and saw the entire thing. She couldn't quite look them in the eye but she could feel their vibe that they didn't feel comfortable with it. All she could do was just run from the room, she had never felt so bad in all her life._

A cold shiver ripped through her spine and she hugged her legs even closer to her body trying to keep warm. It wasn't quite time yet to end a lifelong dream so there was nothing to do but wait. Running sand through her fingers her thoughts drifted back to him.

She had decided that she could never face him or the team again. He was couldn't help her and all she wanted was to curl up with a bottle of scotch and wish everything and everyone would just disappear.

She couldn't do that though. "One more drink and your body will shut down completely" the doctor had told her.

She dismissed it as a load of bull, she could still play hockey couldn't she. Then the doctor showed her what a healthy liver looked like and compared it to what hers looked like. She tried not to let it show but she was scared out of her mind.

She wasn't quite ready to say her final "screw you" to the world just yet.


	2. Chapter 2

They had avoided each other for several days until they were forced to practice together.

Coach Orion had sensed some tension between the two and had decided that it would be a great idea for them to work together, him trying to score goals and her trying to defend the net against them.

They managed to get through it without any dramas and barely said more than four words to each other that mainly consisted of "Better luck next time".

After practice she had showered and changed as fast as possible and left the locker room before anyone could talk to her.

A few hours later Connie, Charlie, Goldberg and Fulton had shown up at her door ready to drag her off for pizza with the team.

No one cared that she didn't want to go, especially for a reason that she refused to tell, they had decided she needed cheering up so here she was looking like she had just stolen something as she was tiptoeing behind Fulton with her head down trying to avoid being seen by him.

She didn't have to go to such trouble though. She saw him sitting at the table with the rest of the team at the same time her saw her and sitting on his lap was some random girl she'd never seen before.

She didn't bother with an explanation to the others as she just turned on her heel and walked out as calmly as she could. She couldn't let him see that he had gotten to her.

The second she was out of the door she started running. She could hear footsteps behind her and him calling her name. She ignored him and tried to run even faster. He caught up with her, grabbing her arm and spinning her around.

"It's not what it looks like" he tried to reason with her, tried to explain his actions. She wasn't having any of his bullshit excuses.

"So a girl sitting on your lap isn't what it looks like? Funny it looked EXACTLY like that to me or do you honestly think all the alcohol turned me blind too?" she shot back.

She had no idea where the sarcastic comments came from they just seemed to escape her mouth before she knows what she's saying.

"Julie, she just came and sat on my lap but I swear I'm not interested in her, honest" he pleaded like a cheating partner who had just been caught out, only him and Julie weren't together at all.

She stared hard at him on the outside, inside her stomach was doing somersaults "I'm sorry but what exactly makes you think I CARE about you and some girl?" she shot at him.

He tried to touch her arm but she shook him off "Why did you run then?" he asked a smile creeping across his face.

Julie's heart skipped a beat, he was so cute when he did that. "Since I'm not allowed to have a drink and get crazy I have to get my exercise somehow" she retorted.

He looked quite amused, "Without getting your dinner?" he challenged.

"Oh shut up will you" she responded turning to walk away.

"So you're saying you don't care then?" he called after her, she didn't answer. He smiled to himself, he knew that he had gotten under her skin.

He guessed that he was the first person who had done that in a long time.

_She blinked back a tear afraid that if she started crying then she would never be able to stop. There was so much unfinished business between them. She remembered that day well, it was the first time she had let her guard down and given him a glimpse of how she really felt._


	3. Chapter 3

Things had started turning around for her when she went back to school at Eden Hall the following week and befriended a new girl named Tash.

It started when she had helped Tash with her locker and in return Tash had beaten up a cheerleader that had given Julie a hard time. Everyone was shocked, especially Julie. She'd never known anyone to stand up for her like that in her entire life.

She almost burst out laughing as she remembered he'd come rushing over to the classroom expecting to find her in some drunken state but he had to eat an extremely large piece of humble pie when he found out it was Tash who was in trouble and not her.

She never forgot the jeering she received from Kelly, Eden Hall's biggest bitch "As if someone like Adam would care about someone like you, to him you're just another guy on the hockey team".

At the time she had shut herself off from him and the rest of the world, taking Jade's words personally. It wasn't until she had a conversation with Tash that she realised that someone thought she was worth caring about.

Tash couldn't understand why all of the guys were falling over themselves to ask her out. Tash was one of those girls who basically had to fight for everything she had. She had come to Eden Hall after her parents were killed in a drug-dealer shootout and her snobby aunt and uncle had no choice but to take her in.

"But I'm just me Julie" she protested.

Julie had taken her over to the mirror and explained it – "See Tash, beautiful, Julie, not beautiful, I'm just seen as one of the guys"

She never forgot the horrified look on Tash's face as she said "No Jules, you are beautiful. You're the most beautiful person I know"

As best as she tried to cover it, she was secretly thrilled that a girl as awesome as Tash thought that Julie was beautiful too.

_If Tash thought she was beautiful maybe he would think so too._


	4. Chapter 4

The school dance was coming up and theme chosen this year was the 20's era.

Julie had been hoping he'd ask her to the dance but he never did.

Instead Connie had come up with a lame idea that Julie should go along with her and Guy. Great! Not only was she seen as a guy, now she couldn't get a real date either, she had to tag along with her teammate and her boyfriend.

On top of all that she was petrified because she seemed to have two left feet that only a pair of skates could cover.

Connie had tried to teach her how to dance but an embarrassing encounter in Guy's dorm with Adam walking in had put her off. Now she practiced in the privacy of her locked dorm.

She had kept her dress a secret too. She didn't want to get too excited about things as she felt that it would only lead to disappointment.

Her big night finally came and all those hours practicing paid off when her and Guy won the dancing contest.

Guy was surprisingly a great dancer but it was so worth everything to see the look on his face when he saw her in a dress for the first time. She gritted her teeth and put up with all the gushing and compliments received from people, especially her English teacher who told her she danced just like Ginger Rogers and then wouldn't stop talking about it.

When she finally managed to get away she headed for the door as quickly as she could, she needed fresh air. It was getting kind of claustrophobic.

She sat alone at the top of the steps a cup of water beside her. She started fantasizing about what it would be like if he was her partner instead of Guy, what if he was the one who twirled her around like she was floating on air.

Footsteps behind her interrupted her thoughts, she turned around to see who it was but it wasn't whom she hoped it would be.

It was Connie, "Oh Julie I didn't know you were out here" Connie was obviously dying to ask her if she was okay.

"I'm fine Connie, really. Just needed some fresh air. It was getting really hot under those lights".

Connie seemed to accept her explanation. "Well, okay then, I'll see you inside in a little bit then?" she asked hopefully.

She had noticed something was up with her friend lately but Julie was shutting her out completely.

"Yeah, of course" Julie replied watching her leave.

She settled back into her own thoughts, back to the only thing that seemed to fill her mind lately. Adam. No matter what else she thought about things always seemed to relate back to him. And then it happened.

He came around the corner just like she had dreamed that he would.

"There you are" he said, a smile creeping across his face.

"Here I am" she mimicked.

He laughed at her. "I've been looking for you everywhere" he said.

Julie's eyes lit up. "Why?" she asked trying to play it cool.

Adam smiled at her again "Because I don't think its fair that Guy gets to dance with you and I don't" he said offering his hand.

"Well that's because Guy's a better dancer than you are" she retorted in her usual new-founded sarcastic tone.

Adam was beginning to love that so much about her. "Yeah but I don't want to dance with Guy, he's not really my type" Adam joked hoping Julie would take the bait.

She finally took his hand and Adam wrapped his arm around her waist whilst holding her hand. They gently rocked back and forth.

"So what's your type then?" Julie asked expecting him to say Cheerleaders like Luis' new girlfriend Mindy.

Adam stopped dancing and looked her in the eyes. "You" he replied.

She smiled half expecting it to be a big joke but he bent down and kissed her on the lips and if she thought that first kiss was good, this one blew her away. It felt so right between them.

Unfortunately like their last kiss, the moment was interrupted by someone yet again.

"Hey Julie!" Tash's bubbly voice called.

Julie broke away from the kiss and mumbled "I'm sorry" before running down the steps

"JULIE!" Adam called after her but she wouldn't stop. Adam tried to chase her but she could outrun him when she wanted to.

"Hey Adam, where'd Julie go?" Tash came up beside him.

Adam looked at her, he was ready to give her a serving for interrupting the best moment of his life. He couldn't be angry at Tash thought, one look at her confused face and he knew she had no idea what she'd just interrupted.

"I don't know" he replied. "One minute we were….the next she ran off" Adam decided to take the plunge and looked at Tash sadly, maybe Tash would relay this to Julie and Julie would realise that she was what he really wanted.

Tash suddenly smiled at him "Oh Adam were you and Julie, finally getting together? Oh my god that's so great!" she exclaimed dancing around him happily. "You two would make the most excellent couple!"

Adam had to laugh at Tash's optimism, he knew him and Julie would be great together but they seemed to have a little trouble getting it right.


	5. Chapter 5

Her lips felt hot where his had been moments before. She knew it was childish running off on him like that but she didn't know what else to do.

She ignored the night guard's curious stares as she ran straight past him and upstairs to her shared dorm. She grabbed the suitcase that had once belonged to her dad and started throwing clothes into it.

She had made the choice, tomorrow she would be leaving Eden Hall and the Ducks and starting her new life back in Maine, where her father was buried. There she would forget all about Adam and there would be nothing to remind her of him. She had to start afresh.

She heard muffled voices downstairs, followed by footsteps running up the stairs, getting closer until the door to her room opened.

"Connie is that you?" she said without turning around.

The footsteps grew closer "Connie?" she spun around and came face to face with HIM.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she said trying her best to conceal the fact that she had been crying.

"What the hell are you doing?" he said indicating to the open suitcase on her bed.

"Going on a picnic, what do you think I'm doing" she said sarcastically turning back around to shove more clothes into the case.

"Julie you can't just leave" he said noticing that a few people were starting to gather at the door to watch the fight. Adam closed the open door; this was one conversation that needed to be kept private.

"Give me one reason why not, no wait give me one GOOD reason why not" Julie replied, her eyes filled with anger.

She didn't know why she felt so upset; she didn't know why he was even here having this conversation with her.

Adam took a deep breath. This was it; this was the chance for him to tell her exactly how he felt about her.

"Am I a good enough reason to stay?" he asked feeling himself tearing up. He needed her to stay, he felt like nothing without her.

She stopped in her tracks. She gathered up all of her courage and turned around to face him "Why do you want me around anyway, I get things with us Adam, I understand that we can never be together. I'm just your teammate and one of the guys. You don't have to try to make me feel better about it"

Adam put his hands on her shoulder and looked into her eyes "I don't want to make you feel better about anything, I just want YOU. I don't care about anything else". There! He'd finally said it.

Fresh tears sprung to her eyes, this was what she wanted, this was what she had been dreaming about since she'd first laid eyes on him,

"But why? Why now?" she asked trying to turn away but his hands on her shoulders wouldn't let her.

He tried to draw her into him but she was resisting. "I've always wanted you Julie, I guess I was just too scared before, I…………….I…………." he stammered, if he said it, he'd feel like a fool, he obviously wasn't convincing her of anything.

"You what? You Love me? Is that why you want me to stay? If I do Adam, where would we go from here? Tell me that, I don't see anything changing between us, all I can see is the team falling apart around us" she said breaking free of his grip and continuing with her packing.

Adam grabbed her again and kissed her hard on the mouth "I love you Julie, I always have. I want you to stay, I need you to stay. Please stay for me" he pleaded, the desperation showing in his eyes. He'd finally broken down his barriers and fears and had laid himself on the line for her. It was up to her to decide now.

She wiped the tear that was forming in the corner of her eye. That moment had been so special between them. That was the defining moment for her, he had told her he loved her and he had meant it.

She had to laugh at herself though, why did she run away from him that night if all she wanted was to be with him. She knew the answer to her question, she didn't want to be seen as the dumb girl goalie with a crush on the hottest player on her team.

She got that feeling from almost everyone around her. She felt it from the ever so perfect Cheerleaders and their cronie and she felt it a little from the other guys on the team.

That night was the first, last and only night they had ever spent together. It was undoubtedly the best night of both of their lives.

After an extremely romantic breakfast and Adam shouting the news to everyone that he was in love with her and didn't care what anyone thought they had to face the real world. Word had gotten back to Coach Orion and he wanted to know what the hell was going on and now.


	6. Chapter 6

He was on the way to the rink when it happened.

They told her he never felt a thing, he never saw it coming but she knew the heartache he went through.

She knew because he told her. They said he died on impact but she knew better. Adam had lived for a minute after it happened and he told her that minute was hell for him, it was hell because he knew he was going to die and that he would never see her face again, never tell her that he loved her again in person, only in spirit could he tell her such things.

The tears were flowing freely now as she felt for the urn beside her, it was time to do what she came to do.

Pulling on her skates, she grabbed his jersey and hockey stick and with the urn nestled under her arm she pushed off onto the ice.

This was exactly what he wanted her to do, she knew because he came to her at night, when she felt the loneliest.

She lifted the lid off of the urn and proceeded to skate around the pond until she found the spot. Carefully using his hockey stick, she stabbed at the ice until a hole emerged.

Trying her hardest not to cry she knelt beside the hole and slowly tipped his ashes into the water below. This was his final wish and he wanted her to be the one to do it.

I love you so much Julie, you have made me the happiest man. Don't be afraid to live your life.

With his words fresh in her head she stood up, gathered his jersey and stick and skated back to the edge of the pond where the Ducks were waiting for her.

Let them take care of you now baby. His voice was heard for the last time and Julie smiled up towards the stars knowing that she'd be alright.


End file.
